“Nature Cure” practitioners have known about the benefits of fermented foods for centuries. Just recently, scientists have discovered that the vitamin K2 that is found in fermented foods is good to treat and prevent cancer – mainly prostate cancer. Vitamin K1 which is found in dark green, leafy vegetables, has many wonderful benefits, but does not help prevent prostate cancer.
FERMENTED LACTIC ACID
BENEFIT: Not only a food, but also a medicine.
- Known to improve arthritis, ulcers, colds, digestive disorders, and cancer.
- Enzymes and natural lactic acids are produced during the fermentation process and these substances have a beneficial normalizing effect on the metabolism.
- Fermented lactic acid destroys harmful, putrefactive intestinal bacteria and contributes to better digestion and assimilation of nutrients from food.
- Fermented foods can be considered as “pre-digested” foods, which are easily digested and assimilated even by persons with weak digestive organs.
- Fermented foods improve intestinal hygiene and help prevent constipation. They help produce the proper bacterial environment in the bowel so that certain vitamins can be manufactured there. Also, having the right bacteria in the bowel breaks down certain herbs so that the active ingredients can be assimilated and carried in the blood stream to the target tissues.
FOODS: Soured milk, yogurt, kefir, pickled vegetables, sourdough breads, miso, tofu, sauerkraut, apple cider
DILL CROCK
I love Euell Gibbon’s (anyone remember him?) idea of making a dill crock with things from the garden and also wild things. (Stalking the Wild Asparagus)
He began by putting a layer of dill in the bottom of a crock pot – although a glass gallon jar would also work – and then adding things that he had, such as peeled Jerusalem artichokes, onions (including the small bulbs that come on the green tops), layer of cauliflower in small florets, sweet red pepper strips, handful of green nasturtium seed pods. Covered all this with more dill and the brine: 1 part salt, 1/2 part vinegar, 10 parts water. He set a saucer on top weighted with a rock to keep everything below the brine, put it in a cool place (cellar) and waited 2 weeks.
Later he experimented with other fresh, crisp vegetables, like green or wax beans (these he blanched for 3 min. to get rid of the fuzz), small green or cherry tomatoes, green onions, leeks, peeled zucchini chunks, peeled watermelon rind (this with just dill) and let’s not forget chunks of cucumber.
Other leaves besides dill could be used: grape leaves, cherry leaves, wild greens, like purslane stems. I would think nasturtium leaves or flowers would be good.
If scum appears above the dish, just skim it off. If you get a thicker scum, remove the veggies, rinse in cold water and pack in glass jars with new brine and leave in refrigerator.
Note: I made this one fall a few years ago and it tastes wonderful – although is quite salty so rinse before eating. I found the red pepper strips got very limp and I preferred the more crisp vegetables – although it did look pretty in the jar!
